click to enlarge Lee DeVito
Erica Pietrzyk at the counter of Pietrzyk Pierogi.
Pietrzyk Pierogi's transformation from pop-up to permanent is complete. The Eastern Market brick-and-mortar spot celebrates its grand opening from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday.
Erica Pietrzyk (pronounced like "pea-ah-shyck" for the Polish-challenged) started serving pierogi based on her family's recipes in 2014 as a pop-up in bars in and around Hamtramck. Since then, she launched a Kickstarter, raising more than $10,000 for appliances and other costs in order to open a more permanent location inside Eastern Market's Gratiot Central Market. The spot had a soft opening Labor Day weekend, and will roll out frozen packaged food as well as specials this weekend.
Pietrzyk says the specials include pierogi with a modern twist, like "Lox of Dill" (stuffed with salmon, cream cheese, and scallions, and tucked into a dill dough) and a "Cheeseburger" variety (ground beef, sirloin, and cheese sauce, topped with sesame seeds).
Other menu items include Zapiekankie (Polish street pizzas), cold vegetable salads, kielbasa, seasonal soups, and city chicken. Frozen pierogi are also available for sale, as well as other merchandise.
Pietrzyk tells us the Eastern Market spot was previously used as a prep kitchen for Sugar House, and before that it was a Legends Coney Island. Now, Pietrzyk Pierogi is one of only two vendors in Gratiot Central Market that sells prepared food rather than raw food.
Pietrzyk Pierogi is located at 1429 Gratiot Ave., Detroit, Suite #109. Hours are 10 a.m.-3 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday, and 9 a.m-5 p.m. Thursday through Saturday, with carry-out hours from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Tuesday and Wednesday and 10 a.m.-4 p.m. from Thursday through Saturday.
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